Diapers

megamegan60 · July 2012

have a question that I need your ladies opinions on. Everyone knows diapers are expensive, so I had heard from a few other people to stock up on some diapers here and there of various sizes so that it is not such a financial strike when you have to buy them every couple of weeks. Just a couple of months from each size or something. My husband asked people at his work about that and they all told him not to do it because then you will have too many. He claimed that you will get so many from showers and parents, ect. I know you get diapers from showers, but I couldnt imagine it would be that much, plus, when I have my shower, it will only be approx 15 people, so I couldnt imagine getting that many to cover you in the different stages. We really dont have any close family that lives around either. My mother lives over 3 hours away and his parents just dont think of things like that to give as gifts or just because. What are your thoughts on this? We dont have a lot of disposable income in the first place, so I want to help us out where we can. Thanks in advance for your help!!!

Kie310 · July 2012

This is what we did with our first & what we are doing now. Every pay check I go to target and get a $50 gift card. Once the baby is here those gift cards are for diapers & formula. I wouldn't go buy random sizes now, because yes you don't know what brand you will end up liking, you don't know how much of a size you will or won't need.

ETA: Target is where we buy EVERYTHING for us and our current child so I don't feel "stuck" with them. It's Target, the gift cards won't go to waste. I spend $200 a week there regularly. I already buy all his diapers there & it's where we got all his formula. Go with wherever you do most of your shopping now if you go with the gift card idea.

laurapacheco · July 2012

I actually asked this same question awhile back, and the general consensus was to wait until LO is born so that you know what brand/size etc. you're going to need. For spreading out expenses they suggested things like the gift card idea that PP just mentioned, but personally I don't want to be confined to one store so I'm just putting a little bit of $$ aside in a separate savings account to help with those expenses when the time comes. GL!

mest1215 · July 2012

we are stocking up, but obvioulsy being my 3rd baby im not having a shower so i doubt anyone will buy them for me lol. If you are having showers and stuff, i'd buy the bigger sizes (size 1 and 2, mostly 2) bc most people will get you nb size and lets face it, they dont wear those for long. lol

brianabrad · July 2012

I plan to stock up a little. I got some coupons in the mail from pampers and plan to watch for a sale and then use them. I doubt I will stock up a lot because like PP said you really don't know what you will need until baby is here. I will probably stock up more on the size 1 and 2 diapers than the newborn since depending on weight baby might not be in newborn at all or at least not for very long.

mrsodonnell12 · July 2012

Kie310:
This is what we did with our first & what we are doing now. Every pay check I go to target and get a $50 gift card. Once the baby is here those gift cards are for diapers & formula. I wouldn't go buy random sizes now, because yes you don't know what brand you will end up liking, you don't know how much of a size you will or won't need.

That is a wonderful plan!

lindsey913 · July 2012

I agree with PP. I would buy some giftcards or set aside some money for things like diapers if you want to start saving now. That way you aren't storing them or locked into a brand/size that you may not like or need later. If you want to buy some to have on hand, great, but I wouldn't go crazy.

BLPL101 · July 2012

I coupon so I plan to stock up if I find a great deal.

LovelyLou23 · July 2012

Have you thought about cloth? If you don't have much disposable income, it can save a lot of money. Sure, there is an upfront cost, but in the long run it will really save. Just throwing that idea out there

As far as stocking up on disposables now? I would wait until the baby is born. Even in the 3 weeks we did disposable at the beginning, I had a preference--Pampers over Huggies, but Huggies wipes over Pampers wipes. Weird, I know. You just never know until the baby comes.

JennV514 · July 2012

Do the gift card idea.

bearkatjen · July 2012

I can understand putting money aside in a seperate account or something, but I would not buy diapers now or even gift cards. You may need to switch brands or you won't be in one size as long as you think and your stuck with those diapers you don't need. You don't know what people will gift you. If you buy gift cards, then you are stuck with a store and won't be in a great position to take advantage of coupons or really good deals you find elsewhere.

I'd add up extra regular weekly or monthly expenses you will have once the baby arrives, and start putting that amount in savings to get your budget accustomed to missing that money, and to help pad your savings some before the baby arrives.

osufan · July 2012

I definitely don't suggest stocking up because you don't know what size or brand you are going to use for sure. With #1 we received quite a few from showers and as gifts and we knew we wanted to try Pampers first. So, we kept the ones we received as gifts if they were Pampers and kept some newborn and size 1 diapers. The others I put back in case we didnt like Pampers and once we knew we did I exchanged them.

I also don't suggest gift cards and would say to just put cash back. That way you are not stuck with one store.

After that though we signed up on Amazon.com in the Amazon Mom's program. I definitely suggest it and its free and well worth the discount on diapers, wipes, etc that you get. Even with coupons you can use in stores the price on Amazon can't, at least not that I have found, be beat!

Here is the direct link to the Amazon Mom program: https://www.amazon.com/gp/mom/signup/welcome

For signing up you always get a 20% discount on diapers. You sign up to have them shipped to you once a month, every 2 month, every 3 months etc. to get the discount. Whatever time frame you want and works for you. You can always cancel or change the deliver too which is great. We get diapers once a month and wipes every 2 months.

megamegan60 · July 2012

Thank you everyone for your advice!! That helps tremendously!! I like so many of your ideas and Im glad I reached out to you all. Thanks again!!!

clariknittist · July 2012

LovelyLou23:
Have you thought about cloth? If you don't have much disposable income, it can save a lot of money. Sure, there is an upfront cost, but in the long run it will really save. Just throwing that idea out there

We're doing cloth diapering for this very reason - well, and a couple others, too. They're really not what they used to be - my mom cloth diapered us in the 80's and the options were non-existent. Of course, we have laundry in our home - if we were in an apartment without a washer and dryer, for instance, there's no way this would work for us. If it's something that's at least a possibility to consider, the cloth diapering board on here is really helpful with a good FAQ section to get started.

TexasMom7137 · July 2012

I like PP suggestion on gift cards. We do stock up when good sales are going on. Diapers a very easy to exchange. Even at Target (whose return policy is usually terrible). As long as you are exchanging an item for another item in the same category it is really easy even if you don't keep your receipt. We did this when DS grew out of size 4's a lot more quickly than we though he would.

brianabrad · July 2012

Does Amazon mom cost? It says try it free for 3 months so I was scared to sign up now and use up my 3 months.

MichelleEZcheck · July 2012

The Gift Card idea is a great idea (certainly as long as its for a store you know you'll shop at no matter what)- I think I will start doing that. The extra money that will need to be spent on diapers/formula has us concerned at the moment. I'm sure mostly b/c it's an unknown and until you know exactly how it will affect your budget, it's always a little scary.

bearkatjen · July 2012

brianabrad:
Does Amazon mom cost? It says try it free for 3 months so I was scared to sign up now and use up my 3 months.

It has never cost me. For awhile you get Prime Membership free, so maybe that is what it's referring too? With subscription orders I think you get free two day shipping either way.

sbevmc09 · July 2012

I wouldn't stock up on diapers because you probably will get some as gifts and from the hospital. Also, you might find that you prefer one brand over another. We decided we didn't like disposables at all and after only a few weeks decided to start cloth diapering. Plus, you won't know how long your child will be in a particular size. It's probably a good idea to start setting aside money for incidentals anyway whether that be diapers or other expenses that may arise.

lala62908 · July 2012

i like the gift card idea. im going to do that thank you for the idea

bundymommy · July 2012

I like the gift card ideas! The only reason I wouldn't do it is because I can save 5% with my RedCard at Target, but it doesn't count towards gift cards. So it'd be like buying diapers without saving an extra 5%. And when you buy a lot of diapers, 5% can add up.

With my first I did stock up. A lot. We stil have size ones left, which is okay with me because now we don't have to buy as many for this baby. Smile However, I didn't feel too bad. Every box/bag of diapers I bought before DD was born I got on major discount, usually combining a sale with two forms of coupons (store and manufacturer). Usually the big boxes would be about $3 off on sale, plus I would have about $5 in coupons, so I'd be saving about $8 per box for name-brand diapers. I did make sure to try and vary the brand/style in case we really hated one.

I also stocked up on wipes, because you can't go wrong with those. I found as long as I always just bought the sensitive kind I didn't have to worry about LO having problems with them.

megamegan60 · July 2012

Kie310:

This is what we did with our first & what we are doing now. Every pay check I go to target and get a $50 gift card. Once the baby is here those gift cards are for diapers & formula. I wouldn't go buy random sizes now, because yes you don't know what brand you will end up liking, you don't know how much of a size you will or won't need.

ETA: Target is where we buy EVERYTHING for us and our current child so I don't feel "stuck" with them. It's Target, the gift cards won't go to waste. I spend $200 a week there regularly. I already buy all his diapers there & it's where we got all his formula. Go with wherever you do most of your shopping now if you go with the gift card idea.

I love this idea! thanks!!!

megamegan60 · July 2012

bundymommy:

I like the gift card ideas! The only reason I wouldn't do it is because I can save 5% with my RedCard at Target, but it doesn't count towards gift cards. So it'd be like buying diapers without saving an extra 5%. And when you buy a lot of diapers, 5% can add up.

With my first I did stock up. A lot. We stil have size ones left, which is okay with me because now we don't have to buy as many for this baby. However, I didn't feel too bad. Every box/bag of diapers I bought before DD was born I got on major discount, usually combining a sale with two forms of coupons (store and manufacturer). Usually the big boxes would be about $3 off on sale, plus I would have about $5 in coupons, so I'd be saving about $8 per box for name-brand diapers. I did make sure to try and vary the brand/style in case we really hated one.

I also stocked up on wipes, because you can't go wrong with those. I found as long as I always just bought the sensitive kind I didn't have to worry about LO having problems with them.

Thank you so much for your advice! I appreciate it!

TRobRN · July 2012

Kie310:

This is what we did with our first & what we are doing now. Every pay check I go to target and get a $50 gift card. Once the baby is here those gift cards are for diapers & formula. I wouldn't go buy random sizes now, because yes you don't know what brand you will end up liking, you don't know how much of a size you will or won't need.

ETA: Target is where we buy EVERYTHING for us and our current child so I don't feel "stuck" with them. It's Target, the gift cards won't go to waste. I spend $200 a week there regularly. I already buy all his diapers there & it's where we got all his formula. Go with wherever you do most of your shopping now if you go with the gift card idea.

That is such a good idea!!!!!

pghctwife · July 2012

I wouldn't stock up more than like a box per size. H was in size 3 FOREVER but size 2 for 3 seconds. For example He went through about 1 box of NB.

We use amazon too. Wait till baby comes to sign up for amazon mom... you start at 3 free months and every $25 (?) yo sped adds a month but you max out at a year. Thats how it was at least.

nicoletteb1985 · July 2012

I stock up when there are diaper sales. I already have the first year covered for my next baby because Target was having an amazing diaper sale a few weeks ago. When it comes down to the cost I think I spend about $300 per year on diapers, which realistically isn't that bad. Size 3 and 4 are the ones you need the most of, but then again you may end up with a petite child, my neighbor's little girl is in a size 2 still at 18 months. Anyways, I do agree with the women who said pampers over huggies, but huggies wipes over pampers wipes.

Want a personalized experience?

Diapers

Re: Diapers

Choose Another Board

Search Boards